The Childhood Secret
by Nixi Stasia
Summary: When Hershel moves to the country and meets Claire, they immediately become best friends and discover a den in the middle of the woods. They're warned to stay away from there, because it's dangerous. But it's the only place they can go to be their true selves and live their dreams. Can they choose between their life's, dreams and their friendship? Or will it be too late...
1. The First Encounter

**This won't be very long so don't blame me for starting another story.**

**Please R&R! **

**Don't Tell**

**Chapter 1 The First Encounter**

It was a warm summer day. Nearly the middle of August. The sky was cloudless, and a bright blue. Birds flew about and chirped happy songs and the trees waved about whispering to each other, through the warm breeze. All in all, it was a beautiful day.

A small girl, with blue eyes, and long, wavy, light, brown hair, sat underneath a tree. She pushed her glasses to the top of her nose and pierced a hole in the stem of the daisy, only to pick another little flower and thread them together and make the start of a necklace.

Not only daisy's grew in the grass, of that forest, but dandelions and buttercups, did too. Beautiful bursts of yellow spread across the small field in the forest. The girl loved it there. She was alone. In her own little world. No one to tell her that she couldn't do this or she can't do that. She could do whatever she wanted. Her imagination and dreams would fly up and out, and join the little birds in the sky.

When you're a child, the world seems so big, but really, the size of the world depends on you.

The girl jumped, and her head perked up when she heard a snap. She looked up and saw a boy. Quickly, the boy hid behind a tree, which he stood next too. The tree was covered in moss, which meant that way was south. The girl had read about it. She liked to read.

The little girl was shy, yet somehow she knew this boy wouldn't hurt her. Slowly, she stood up, leaning on the tree for support. Then, she tiptoed over to the tree the boy was standing behind. Carefully, quietly and slowly. Like approaching a deer, you mustn't make any sudden movements. She took one step at a time.

One step.

One step.

One step.

Each step, the girl thought about. Did each step cause an earthquake for all the little insects, in the ground? Could rabbits and badgers feel the ground shake, in their burrows? These thoughts, only caused the girl to go slower. She was gentle, and didn't want to hurt anything that lived.

Once the girl got to the tree, she put the palm of her hand on the tree, and walked around it, to where the boy was. Only to find, that the boy moved around the tree to. The girl was clever, and so went the other way. The boy did do too.

For several silent minutes, the two young children walked silently around the tree, never meeting each other. Until, the girl pretended to go left, but instead went right. She trapped the boy. She giggled.

"Hi," she greeted, a wide welcoming smile spread across her face, producing tow dimples at the side of her cheeks.

"Uh... Hello," the boy said, running his hand through his hair. Embarrassed. His cheeks went as tiny bit pink.

"What's your name?" the girl asked.

"Err... I'll tell you mine, if you tell me yours."

"I'm Claire Foley," the girl grinned," Now tell me yours?"

"Hershel Layton," the boy answered.

"Nice to meet you, Hershel," Claire smiled, and stuck her hand out, for Hershel to shake.

The boy hesitated, if only for a split second. Then put out his hand and shook hands with the girl. Hershel always felt shy. Before, this was no exception, but now he felt safe.

"Nice to meet you, Claire," Hershel said, nervously. His Mother had always told him to be polite to a lady.

"How old are you?"

"Eight."

"Me too. Last week.

"Oh. I'm nine next week."

A few nervous giggles burst from Claire, before saying," I don't remember seeing you before."

"That's because I just moved here. I used to live in London."

"London? I went there once. I didn't like it. It was too noisy and big and smelt funny."

"I like London. I don't like it here in the country. It's too quiet and small and it smells funny here too."

"Do you want to go back?" Claire asked.

Hershel nodded, then stopped and thought then shook his head, then stopped and shrugged.

"Maybe," Hershel said," Maybe one day when I'm older."

"What do you want to be when you're older?" Claire asked.

"An archaeologist. It's someone who studies old things," Hershel answered.

"I know," Claire said.

Hershel was shocked. None of the other children at his old school knew what it was. He smiled.

"What about you?" Hershel asked.

"A scientist," Claire replied.

They stood in a perfect moment of silence. They were hard to get, perfect moments of silence. A person can spend their whole life searching for one, it probably won't happen, but if it does then they're wonderful. All moments have to end, though, no matter how perfect.

"Claire? Claire?" A faint voice was heard.

"That's my Mum," Claire sighed,"I've got to go. I'll meet you here tomorrow. At two o'clock?"

Hershel nodded.

"Goodbye," Claire said, and began running off towards the voice.

"Goodbye!" Hershel called to her.

He waved, even though her back was turned, and didn't stop until she was out of sight. Then he went back over to the tree, where Claire was first sitting. He saw a daisy chain, made out of eleven little flowers, in the patch she was sitting. He picked it up examined it. Every corner of it. Before heading home and putting it on the top of his book shelve.

**I hope you enjoyed it! I think it's better then any of my other stories. What do you think?**

**Peace Out! Dandelion Oak xx**

**P.S. Constructive criticism please and if you haven't already, vote on my poll. I need to hear from YOU about what story to do next!**


	2. My Friend In The Woods

**AN: Sorry it's been so long! Here's the next update! **

**Disclaimer: Claire: Moni * I'm asleep and Claire pokes me to wake me up. I eventually wake up ***

**Me: What?  
Claire: You need to do the disclaimer!**

**Me: Augh! I do not own Professor Layton, all credit goes to level-5!  
Claire: Good girl, now go back to sleep.**

**Me: Get out of my room!  
Claire: I wish you did own Professor Layton. Then I'd be alive.**

**Me: You won't be if you don't get out of my room!**

* * *

Chapter Two My Friend In The Woods

Claire skipped through the woods, towards her house. A small two bedroom cottage at the end of the woods. It was a beautiful, peaceful little home. Like the type in a fairytale. The walls were white and the door was wooden and painted a deep blue. Two baskets of white, red and pink pansies, hung either side of the door and the roof was made out of dark brown tiles. The garden was well cared for and the bushes were trimmed back, neatly. It was clear to passers-by that whoever lived in the little cottage took great pride in it.

Claire pushed the front door open, hard- it was a stiff lock- and went inside. Before anything else, she took of her shoes, a pair of pink child's sandals. Lots of mud had gathered on the sole of the shoes and her Mother would get annoyed, easily if mud got on the cream carpets. Claire placed her shoes under the stairs before skipping to the kitchen, where the smell of leak and parsley stew filled her nostrils.

"There you are, pet," her Mother said, dishing up the stew into a bowl," Go and wash your hands for dinner. You don't want to eat all that mud do you?"

Confused, Claire looked down at her hands, they were covered with mud and green marks, from the grass -probably when she was making the daisy chains. She stood on her toes and washed her hands at the kitchen sink, then went and sat down at the table.

"There you go," her Mother said, placing the bowl in front of her and then putting her own bowl in-front of her and sitting down.

"Isn't Dad back yet?" Claire asked, swallowing the stew.

"Not yet, love. He has to stay at the inn late tonight," her Mother explained.

Claire's parents owned the closest inn to the woods. In late spring and summertime, money was good, and the inn was usually full, which was good, but it meant Claire's father was never at home. In the winter and autumn, the inn had one or two guests and money was tight, but Claire's Father was home a lot.

"Oh," Claire said simply.

"Anyway," her Mother said, changing the subject," What did you do today?"

"I met this boy down at the woods," Claire replied.

"Really?"

Claire nodded, smiling. Claire didn't get along with the other children at school and she would just go down to the woods and play and explore on her own. She would confuse people how she could just stay in one small area of the woods all day and not have anyone to speak too or anything to play. She would just sit there, quite happily, playing with the flowers, climbing trees or walking around, looking for little animals or pretending to be looking for lost worlds of some kind. Her Mother was happy that she made a friend, until it occurred to her that this 'friend' could just be imaginary.

"Yes. We met just before I had to come home," Claire answered," We're going to meet again tomorrow at two o'clock."

"Is he here on holiday?"

"No, he's just moved here, from London."

"And what's his name?"

"Hershel Layton. He's the same age as me but nine next week."

"Hmm," her Mother muttered," Claire?"

"Yes, Mum?"

"Tell me the truth, is this boy real? Or did you make him up in one of your little imaginary games?"

"Of course he's real!" Claire exclaimed, angry and a bit upset, slamming down her spoon.

"Ok, Claire calm down. No need to be in a huff about it. I was just asking."

"Hmm. Anyway, tomorrow I was going to show him this secret cave I found earlier today," Claire told her Mother.

"What cave?" her Mum said, seeming stiff all of a sudden.

"Down by the field by the big oak tree, there's this little cave. I was playing a game down there earlier and I think I can show it too Hershel and we can play games together," Claire replied.

"No Claire."

"What?"

"You are not to go down to that cave, Claire. Or show it to Hershel. It's very dangerous and is falling apart. You are _not _to go down there. Do you understand me?"

Claire nodded, shocked.

* * *

Hershel lay on top of his mattress –his bed hadn't been put up yet- reading an encyclopaedia. He liked reading about things. True things though. Fact books. He liked knowing what had happened, how things worked, who had learnt things and Hershel had been known to read a whole box set of encyclopaedias before.

Nothing except a bookshelf which only contained the encyclopaedias and the daisy chain he had picked up, his mattress and a box of clothes were in his room. They had moved yesterday morning and they had spent yesterday sorting out what was who's and which room it would go in. Today, Hershel had felt like he had nothing to do and couldn't help so he had gone of to play.

His room was smaller than his old one, in London, but it had a built in wardrobe, he just hadn't put his clothes away yet, so some space would be saved there. His walls were painted a light blue colour, the same as the living room and the front door. Whoever lived here before obviously liked the colour blue!

The cottage was small. Two bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom and a living room. The front and back garden was quite messy and whoever had lived here before obviously didn't like gardening. His Mother had said yesterday that she would tidy it up and make it look beautiful. Hershel didn't particularly care about what the garden looked like. He just wanted to go back to London.

Well, he had. Until he had met Claire. Maybe they'd be friends when he started the village school in September. She seemed nice and smart. And not someone who would judge him and think he was strange, like all the other children did. Or had in London. Maybe all the children out in the country were like Claire. Maybe this was where he fitted in.

Maybe the countryside wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

**AN: I hope you enjoyed it! Please tell me what you think!**

**Peace Out! Dandelion Oak xx**


	3. The Cave

**AN: Sorry it took so long to update! Here's the next chapter! My English teacher read this story and she said it was very good! **

Chapter Three The Cave

Hershel sat under the tree, that Claire had been sitting under yesterday, when they had first met. He looked around at the small gap in the woods. The grass was green and flowery, the trees swayed in the wind and small rays of sunshine made it through the gaps in the trees, creating a spotlight effect.

It was two o'clock, as far as he could tell. It had been five minutes to two when he left his new house, so Claire should be here soon. Shouldn't she? Hershel began to wonder if she would come. Was Claire his friend? Did Claire actually dislike Hershel and was leading him on? Would she come? Hershel was beginning to think she wouldn't. After all, many children didn't want to be friends with him. In fact, Claire was the first person who's ever showed the slightest bit of kindness to him, other than adults.

After a few more minutes of waiting, Hershel sighed and got up. It looked like Claire wasn't coming after all. As he began to walk back to his new home- a small cottage on the edge of the woods- a small voice stopped him.

"Hershel!" a voice called," Hershel! Wait!"

Surprised, he turned around to see Claire running forward to him. Her light brown hair, bouncing up and down, in the ponytail it was clasped in.

"Sorry I'm late," Claire said, smiling sheepishly," I had to come from the inn, my parents own."

"It's ok," Hershel said, smiling too.

"Oh!" Claire, exclaimed, eagerly, suddenly," Come with me. I've got something to show you!"

"What is...?" Hershel asked, but before he had a chance to answer, Claire grabbed his arm and ran, pulling him with her.

They ran through the fields. Claire's summer dress, covered in floral patterns blew in the wind, as did the ends Hershel's orangey-red t-shirt. They came to a clearing in the middle of the woods.

_We must be nearly there by now, _Hershel thought. And he was right. Claire began to slow down and the grip she had on his sleeve, loosened and her arm hang by her side.

"It's near here somewhere..." Claire muttered, scanning the surrounding woodland.

Suddenly, Claire jumped and ran off again, towards the west. Hershel, sighed and ran after her. Carelessly but gently, Claire began rummaging through the foliage. Hershel stood behind her, giving her a quizzical and confused look.

"What are you doing?" he asked, slightly nervous.

"Come through here," Claire instructed, walking through a small gap in the bush.

After a small moment of hesitation, Hershel followed his friend through the greenery and into a smaller clearing. A gap inbetween the bushes. There, stood a cave. Alone in the wilderness.

"Come on," Claire encouraged, climbing into the cave.

In shock and wonder, Hershel simply stood there, staring in awe.

"Come on!" Claire called, from inside the cave.

Nervously, the young boy clambered through the entrance and slipped down into a dark, dusty and dirty cave. He got up and looked around the cave. It seemed... Strange, you might say. However, not a bad strange, a good strange- something new and exciting.

"I started to come here on my own a few weeks ago," Claire began," I sometimes got a bot bored though because, well you see, I felt a bit alone."

"Didn't you feel alone when you were sitting by the tree yesterday?" Hershel asked.

Claire shook here head and looked around.

"Why not?" Hershel questioned.

"Because there's a lot more wildlife there and things change there all the time," Claire explained," But down here, everything stays the same. It never changes."

"Oh," Hershel simply said.

"But now you're here, I thought we could play some games."

"Like what?"

"Pretend games. Like...Like, magical worlds and far away places," Claire shrugged," What do you think?"

"I, I don't know," Hershel told his friend, embarrassed.

"Come on, let me show you," Claire smiled," It's simple just think of anything. Like... Like, I can be the queen of a magic kingdom and... and you can be the wizard who has cast a spell for everyone to turn to stone!"

"Ok..." Hershel said, unsure.

"Let me show you. It's easy!"


	4. Against Their Wishes

**AN: Hi! I changed my name! I am now Onika Layton! Onika is my real name, I was going by the fake alias of Moni, but I haven't been called that since I was little, so I thought, who cares, I'm Onika! So, yeah, there you go! **

**Enjoy! **

Against Their Wishes

In the middle of the forest, there was a small clearing, surrounded by trees. Small rays of light from the sun, made it down through the trees, creating spotlight effects on the ground.

"What do you want to play today?" Claire asked, her hands tracing the patterns of the bark on a tree.

She loved how it swirled around in and out, it was so beautiful. Natural. No one had made it or designed it. Just nature's own beauty. That was what made it more wonderful, than any other piece of art, anywhere.

The two children had been there for nearly an hour now. Both Hershel and Claire loved the outdoors. They had spent the day playing—chasing the red-tailed squirrels, collecting acorns for an imaginary meal and pretending to fish in the dry creek that split the dense forest from the old farmlands. Now, though, they sat in contemplative silence.

"I don't know," Hershel shrugged, as he sat, slumping against the trunk of another tree.

Claire clicked her tongue, in annoyance. She disliked it when her friend acted this way. Too lazy and thoughtless. She knew he could act so much more mature and it annoyed her that he didn't.

"Why don't we go down to the cave again?" Claire suggested, eagerly.

"No, we can't. My Mother said it's too dangerous there," Hershel replied.

"My Mum said that too, but I still go down there. You had fun didn't you last time?"

"Yes, but..."

"But what? We had fun, they can't tell us what to do."

"Ok then. Let's go."

Claire smiled and she couldn't help, but feel glad at her rebellious actions. Though usually obedient and mature, Claire would occasionally go against her parents wishes and when she did she certainly did feel something exciting. However, she didn't like the feeling of guilt, so did rebel little.

Hershel, on the other hand, wasn't the type to rebel or disobey his parents. He didn't like the feeling of it, or the guilt. He was though, very easily convinced. And after all, just going down to the cave this once wouldn't do any damage, would it?

The two children ran down to the cave and stayed there all afternoon, letting their imaginations run wild.

* * *

After spending the day playing, the two children said goodbye and went home.

Once, Hershel got home, he went into the living room and sat down in the living room to read a book. The living room still wasn't fully unpacked- as was most of the house. The walls were a light yellow colour, like the sun losing it's colour. The floor was made out of oak floor boards, but to add some brightness into the room, the family had put down a rug down in the carpet, giving the room a more friendly atmosphere.

"What's that mud and dust on your shirt, Hershel?" his Mother asked, standing straight all of a sudden. Her brown hair, falling over her face, in her sudden movement.

"Erm, nothing, I... I fell over in the woods," he said, innocently.

"Hershel..." his Mother warned, in a stern voice," Did you go down into that cave?"

"No!" the young boy said quickly.

"Tell the truth."

"I didn't!" he cried.

All it took to get the truth out, was another stern gaze.

"Ok, yes, I went down to the cave. But I promise I won't again!"

"You better not. That cave is falling apart, young man, you could get yourself killed if you're inside and it crumbles down."

**AN: I know it's not a very good update, but I am having lots of trouble updating at the moment. Sorry. **


	5. Our Dreams Live On

**AN: The penultimate chapter! It's very sad, but I hope you like it! **

Our Dreams Live On

The sun rose above the horizon, signalling for the birds to awake and begin to sing their morning song. A golden blanket of the sun's ray's, spread across the woodland and everything was peaceful. The young girl, with auburn hair, sat at her window sill gazing upon the beautiful scenery. She smiled softly at the magnificent world around her.

After a few moments, of admiring the golden paradise, she closed the white, lace curtains and left her bedroom. Happily, the girl galloped down the stairs of the little cottage, in which she lived, and into the kitchen. Both her parents sat at the table drinking tea. They looked up and smiled at their daughter.

After breakfast, the girl put on her shoes and skipped down to the clearing in the woods. As she expected, her best friend, Hershel stood their, leaning against a tree, frowning.

"Hello," she greeted.

He smiled back, then frowned again.

"Shall we go down to the cave again?" Claire asked, eagerly.

"Hmm," the young boy muttered.

Claire turned and looked at her friend, quizzically. He was looking down at the ground. Studying it? Roughly, he scraped his shoes along the dusty ground, getting them scratched and scuffed. His eyes were narrowed down to the ground and his mouth closed tightly. When compared to Claire, he looked like the most miserable person on the planet. Claire was beaming with a radiant happiness and felt as if nothing could get her down. On top of the world, you might say.

"What's wrong?" Claire asked, concerned.

"Nothing, just we can't go down to the cave," Hershel replied.

"Why not?" Claire asked, her blue eyes squinting in confusion, behind her glasses.

"My Mum found out I went to the cave yesterday. She says that it will crumble down soon and we could get badly hurt there."

Claire sighed and looked around. She knew no one was there, but she felt she had to see for herself and not just believe her thoughts- no matter how certain she was. Of course, as Claire already knew, no one was there. Bugs and insects crawled, the trees blew in the wind and leaves rustled. There was life, but no people stood there.

"The cave won't fall down, I've been going there since I started to go outside on my own. It's never moved. It's fine. Adults just worry too much. They think they can tell us what to do, but they can't," Claire protested.

"But what if..."

"But nothing. We'll be fine!" Claire smiled, with promise in her eyes.

"No, Claire. We can't go down there!" Hershel exclaimed.

Claire huffed and threw her arms down by her sides. It wasn't like her to sulk, but she was determined. Determined to prove her dreams couldn't be held in her imagination. All she had to do, was close her eyes and open them again, then she would be in her new world. The cave was the perfect place to do it in. She'd tried in the forest, but it wasn't the sane. No one else would ever go in the cave, whereas in the woodland, people would come and go. It wasn't that Claire was embarrassed, on the contrary, she was completely open about her imagination, but the simplest reminder that she wasn't really there would ruin it.

Being there alone had been fine, but now she'd been there with a friend. A friend who understood her, who didn't judge. Who knew how to dream too and knew how to allow those dreams to come alive. Since she had met Hershel, she'd started to feel less alone. Before, she hadn't felt alone, she had the whole world to entertain her, but now she had someone to share her thoughts with. Claire didn't want to go alone, but she could feel her dreams inside her, waiting to burst out. She had too.

"Fine then, I'll go alone," Claire said, she turned and walked off towards the cave.

"No! Claire, wait!" Hershel shouted after her," You can't go!"

"I know you," Claire replied, turning back to face him" I know you want to come with me."

"Claire, you can't! It's too dangerous!" Hershel exclaimed.

Claire pouted her lips and turned back and stomped off towards the cave.

It truly was a beautiful day. Though the beauty of the world was Claire's favourite thing, she took no notice. Friendship was becoming more important and her dreams were becoming even more important. Her dreams needed to be heard. Shown to the world, not tucked up in her mind and only coming alive whilst she slept. No, dreams were meant for much bigger things.

Claire arrived at the cave, and crawled inside. She had been looking forward to playing in the cave since she'd woken up, but now she was there, she didn't want to play at all. Not without her friend. She didn't want to go back either, though. Now she'd made a fool out of herself in front of her friend.

If Claire hadn't of been so distracted with her own thoughts, she might've noticed a bits of dust and rocks fall from the roof of the cave. Eventually, Claire did notice. When a rock half the size of her dropped from above her, she jumped back in fright. Covering her eyes, Claire looked up.

Bits of rocks and dust, was falling down bit by bit. Quickly, Claire scurried over to the entrance of the cave, but it was blocked by a rock, even bigger than Claire. Using all her strength, she tried to push it out of the way, but it wouldn't budge. The rocks falling became bigger and bigger and soon it was too late.

The young girl, who loved to dream, was swept away into a peaceful sleep, where she would dream forever.

* * *

Hershel sat on the floor of his home, the living room was finished and clean. He sat upon the rug, which had been placed in the middle of the floor. Like he always was, he was reading. Only he wasn't concentrating on the book at all. He couldn't stop thinking about Claire. Had she gone to the cave? Was she upset with him? Were they still friends?

The front door opened and his Father entered the room. A tall, sturdy man, with black hair and a moustache. He hung up his jacket on the coat hanger in the hallway and came into the living room, where his wife and son were.

"You'll never guess what's happened down at the forest," he said, sighing.

"What happened?" the man's wife asked, curious.

The boy looked up to see his Father's face looking grave. He rubbed his back and sat down on the arm chair.

"That cave, in the woods, it caved in earlier today. There was a little girl in there, round about Hershel's name. Claire Foley, I think her name was..."

Hershel jumped up, the book crashing down to the ground. The cave had collapsed and Claire was inside! No... That couldn't have happened. Claire was clever, she wasn't like all the other children who lived in the forest. She was mature, could think for herself. Surely she'd be ok and would've gotten out in time.

"Oh, no! Is she alright?" Hershel's Mother cried, worried.

"No, she died, they found her body by the entrance. They think she must've tried to get out, but the exit had been blocked," his Father explained, sounding grief-stricken," Poor girl. Good thing our Hershel, wasn't down there. It could've been him."

Hershel didn't want to hear anymore. Devastated by the news, he ran off upstairs to his bedroom. His father had said it was a good thing that he hadn't been at the cave, but was it? If he was there, maybe it would have been him who perished and not his friend. Now, he'd lost his only friend. The girl who understood him. The girl who he understood. He should have tried harder to convince her not to go, then she'd still be alive. Or maybe if he'd followed her, he could've gotten her out.

His thoughts only made it worse. He didn't want to feel guilty for it, but he did.

Once he was in his bedroom, he went over to the top of the bookshelf. He couldn't quite reach, but he felt around. His fingers grasped onto a fragile feeling piece of fabric. Carefully, he slid it onto his hand and looked at it the daisy chain.

It was already rotten. The white petals had turned brown and were falling off. The stem was weak, limp and lifeless. It was the only real thing he had left to remember Claire by. But it wouldn't be there forever.

Unlike the memories, which he would never let go of.

**AN: I'm crying! That was so sad to write! This sounds bad, but I hope this made you feel something guys. **

**Did anyone notice my small reference to unwound/lost future?**

**I have one chapter to left to go, but that's the epilogue. I hope you enjoyed this and I hope you enjoy the next chapter!**

**Peace out, Onika :)**

**P.S. Does anyone have an idea for a theme song for this? I have quite a few:**

Chasing the Sun by The Wanted, only a slow version. Maybe an acoustic version. I think teh lyrics suit the storyline really wel.

**Cosmic Love by Florence & the Machine**

**Never Let Me Go by Florence & the Machine**

**Anyone agree/disagree or have any other ideas? **


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